OFFSTAGE: Why Eric Church Loves Springsteen

(CMT Offstage keeps a 24/7 watch on everything that’s happening with country music artists behind the scenes and out of the spotlight.)

When one artist writes a hit song about another artist, it’s pretty obvious there’s a lot of love there. But Eric Church
elaborated on his love for Bruce Springsteen
— whose music was Church’s muse for “Springsteen”
— in the latest issue of People magazine. He opens up about growing up on Born in the U.S.A. but then getting more of an education on the Boss’ music in college. “He’s writing about experience and real life. Darkness on the Edge of Town spoke to me. It was gritty, real and raw,” Church said. And beyond the records, he called Springsteen’s live show a religious experience. “It’s a gang and it’s a mentality, like, ‘We get it. We belong,’” he explained. Springsteen wrote Church a note after he’d heard the song named after him. And that note is now locked up in Church’s house.